President Biden will defend his record on the economy when he delivers his State of the Union address Tuesday night, arguing that he rebuilt the economy after the COVID-19 lockdowns.
Mr. Biden will boast about job creation under his watch, claiming credit for creating 12 million jobs and restoring jobs lost during the pandemic. He will also call for bipartisanship to get his agenda through the Republican-led House.
“Two years ago our economy was reeling. As I stand here tonight, we have created a record 12 million new jobs – more jobs created in two years than any president has ever created in four years,” Mr. Biden will say, according to excerpts released by the White House.
Mr. Biden can point to economic growth since taking office, highlighting low unemployment, cooling inflation and replacing millions of jobs lost during the recession. Employers added an impressive 517,000 jobs in January, signaling a red-hot job market despite recession fears and inflation.
The influx of jobs reduced the January jobless rate to 3.4%, its lowest level since 1969. That’s lower than the nation’s 3.5% jobless rate in March 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Inflation declined to 6.5% in December compared to 7.1% in November, marking the sixth straight monthly slowdown. Prices also dropped by 0.1% in December compared to November, the first such drop since May 2020.
The president will say that those economic gains are the result of his domestic agenda, including his bipartisan infrastructure law and the $740 billion climate, health and tax legislation.
Mr. Biden will say that his economic plan has helped invest in “places and people that have been forgotten.”
“Amid the economic upheaval of the past four decades too many people have been left behind or treated like they’re invisible,” he said in the speech excerpts. “Maybe that’s you watching at home. You remember the jobs that went away. And you wonder whether a path even exists anymore for you and your children to get ahead without moving away. I get it. That’s why we’re building an economy where no one is left behind. Jobs are coming back, pride is coming back because of the choices we made in the last two years.”
Despite the good news, Americans remain skeptical about the economy as fears of a recession loom. Mr. Biden’s approval rating remains mired at 40%, close to the lowest level of his presidency, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll.
The same poll ranked the economy as the most important issue for Americans, with 26% saying it’s their top concern. That was more than double the share that cited crime and immigration as the biggest issue, which polled at 10% and 9%, respectively.
Voters are skeptical that Mr. Biden is up to the job of managing the economy. An Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs poll found that 90% of Republicans and 60% of Democrats say the economy is in bad shape.
Mr. Biden will also call on Congress to work with him, urging lawmakers to get behind his “unity agenda,” a bundle of proposed actions aimed at beating the opioid epidemic, tackling mental health issues, supporting veterans and ending cancer.
Bipartisanship is a political necessity as Mr. Biden faces a hostile, Republican-led House energized to undo his legislative wins and launching investigations ranging from the discovery of classified documents from his time as vice president to his family’s business dealings.
Mr. Biden is hoping his unity agenda will be an easier sell to Republican lawmakers.
“To my Republican friends, if we could work together in the last Congress, there is no reason we can’t work together in this new Congress,” Mr. Biden will say. “The people sent us a clear message. Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflict, gets us nowhere. And that’s always been my vision for the country: to restore the soul of the nation, to rebuild the backbone of America: the middle class, to unite the country. We’ve been sent here to finish the job!”
• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.